Washing machine with improved clothes agitator



J. BOCHAN Nov. 28, 1961 WASHING MACHINE WITH IMPROVED CLOTHES AGITATORFiled Oct. 21, 1960 H \5 ATTO RNEY United States Patent 3,010,303WASHING MACHINE WITH IMPROVED CLOTHES AGITATOR John Bochan, Louisville,Ky., assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New YorkFiled Oct. 21, 1960, Ser. No. 64,141 7 Claims. (CI. 68-23) Thisinvention relates to automatic clothes washing machines, and moreparticularly to a clothes washing machine wherein an improved agitatorstructure makes it possible to utilize a simplified drive arrangementwhile at the same time obtaining excellent washabllity of clothes.

In virtually all prior art clothes washing machines wherein an agitatorstructure is provided extending into a clothes basket so as to causecirculation of liquid in the basket to wash clothes therein, arelatively complex mechanism has been required to transform the rotarymotion provided by the electric motor conventionally used as a powerplant into the motion required of the agitator. This has been trueregardless of the particular type of motion provided for the agitator;some of these include, for instance, vertical oscillation, oscillationin a horizontal plane about a vertical axis, orbital movement, andmechanisms providing a wobble plate effect.

It is, therefore, an object of my invention to provide, in a washingmachine, an agitator of the type which permits use of a very simpletransmission structure from an electric motor in order to provide thedesired washing motion of the agitator.

A more specific object of my invention is to provide a hollow agitatorwhich changes from one shape to another upon an increase of pressuretherewithin, cyclic changes between the two shapes of the agitatorproviding the desired washing action.

In one aspect of my invention, I provide a clothes washing machine whichhas the conventional tub for receiving washing liquid and articles to bewashed. The tub has an opening formed in its wall, and secured againstthat wall about the opening is a flexible hollow agitator member whichextends into the tub. This agitator has a first shape when a first lowerpressure is provided therewithin and changes into a second shape at asecond higher pressure therewithin. The two shapes are such that cyclicchange between them creates a washing motion of liquid in the tub. Inorder to provide this cyclic change in thepressure within the agitator,a piston is arranged to be reciprocable in a cylinder which in turn isconnected through a conduit to the opening so that the reciprocation ofthe piston alternately increases and decreases the pressure within theagitator. The piston movement is effected very simply by use of a wristpin assembly which translates the rotary motion of the motor shaft intothe desired reciprocating motion of the piston.

The features of my invention which are believed to be novel are setforth with particularity in the appended claims. The invention itself,however, both as to organization and method of operation, together withfurther objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood byreference to the following detailed description taken in connection withthe accompanying drawing.

In the drawing, the single FIGURE is a side elevational view of aclothes washing machine including my improved agitator and agitatordriving means, the view being partially broken away and partially insection in order to show details.

Referring now to the FIGURE of the drawing, I have shown therein anagitator type washing machine 1 having an inner clothes containing tubor basket 2 with overflow openings 2a formedadjacent its top. Tub 2 iscontained within an outer imperforate tub 3 which is mounted within anappearance cabinet 4 which includes an appropriate cover (not shown) forproviding access to tub 2. At the center of tub 2, extending upwardlytherein, there is provided an agitator, generally indicated by thenumeral 5, which forms a focal point of my invention. Agitator 5, in thespecific embodiment shown, is formed as an imperforate member 6 formedof a flexible material, such, as for instance, rubber; Within the member6 an inner rigid member 7 having openings 8 formed therein may beprovided for purposes of structural strength. Openings 8 providecommunication between the interior of member 7 and the exterior thereof,that is, the space between members 6 and 7.

As shown, member 7 is preferably secured at its base 9 to the bottomwall 10 of tub 2 and is provided with an outwardly extending flange 11which helps to secure the base 12 of member 6 to bottom wall 10 of tub2. The structure provides, in effect, a clamping relationship by virtueof which the bottom 12 of member 6 is secured to wall 10 in water-tightrelation. Agitator member 6 has a number of vertically extendingcylindrical side wall sections 13, 14, 15 and 16 which, when member 6 isviewed in cross section, are joined to each other in stepped rela tion,by generally horizontally extending portions .17, 18, and 19respectively. As can be seen, the vertically arranged side portions 13,14, 1S and 16 are relatively thick so as to be substantially immune todeformation in response to changes in pressure within the hollow member6. Joining portions 17, 18 and 19, on the other hand, are relativelythin and are formed so that in response to an increase in pressurewithin member 6 they will bulge outwardly. This has the effect ofraising section 14 relative to bottom section 13, section 15 relative tosection 14, and section 16 relative to section 15, the top 20 of theagitator 5 moving up to the position shown in dotted outline.

At the top of vertical wall 14 of agitator 5 there is provided aresilient fin 21 which extends outwardly and upwardly, as shown.Similarly, fins 22 and 23 extend at substantially the same angle fromvertical portions 15 and 16 respectively.

The interior of members 6 and 7 communicates with an opening 24 formedin the center of bottom wall 19 of tu-b 2. Opening 24 communicates inturn with the hollowinterior 24 of a shaft member 26 which, by means ofa flange 27 formed at its upper end, supports the basket 2 from beneath.The shaft 26 is rotatably secured within a tubular support member 28 bym'eans'of suitable bearing members 29 and 30, preferably of the ballhearing type. Bearings 29 and 30 support shaft 26 for rotation withinsupport 28 and also prevent axial movement of the shaft 26. Tubularsupport 28 is itself rigidly supported on a bracket 31 mounted on aframe 32 which, in the conventional manner, may be resiliently supportedfrom the cabinet 4 of the machine.

The shaft 26 is rotatable within the tubular support 28 by means of areversible motor 33 which drives the shaft 26 through a clutch 34mounted on the motor shaft. Clutch 34 allows the motor to start Withoutload and then, for one direction of motor rotation, picks up the load asit comes up to speed. A suitable belt 35 joins the output member 35a ofclutch 34 to a pulley 36 formed at the lower end of shaft 26, so thatupon rotation of motor 33 in a first direction clutch 34 transmits themotor motion when the motor comes up to speed and thereby causesrotation of shaft 26 to effect spinning of tub 2 on the axis of shaft26.

Because of the unidirectional nature of clutch 34, motor rotation in theopposite direction does not cause any motion to be transmitted to thebelt 35 and the tub Patented Nov. 28, 1961 i a this pressure/as thepiston returns to the left.

2 remains stationary. However, reverse direction of there is provided anopening 40 which leads through a conduit 41 to an opening 42 formed inthe tubular support 28. A hollow space 43 is providedbetween shaft 26and support'28, and this provides a communication between the opening 42and an opening 44 provided in shaft 26 which connects the space 43 tothe interior 25 of the shaft. In order to seal the inside of tubularsupport 28 from 'the surrounding atmosphere and also from liquid withintub 3, a suitable seal 45 may be'provided between the upper end ofsupport 28 and shaft 26; a similar sealr46 may be provided at the bottombetween the same two members. a a

As stated, rotation'of motor 33 in the reverse direction on liquid intub 2. During downward movement of the fins, when the member 6 returnsfrom its position in dotted outline to its positionin solid out-line,each of the fins tends to pull back inwardly to its position shown insolid outline or evenmore closely aligned to the vertical. Thisaccordingly reduces the amount of push the causes the wrist pin assembly37 to move piston 38 back and forth within cylinder ,39. This has theeiiect of raising the pressure within the conduit 41, space 43, hollowshaft center 25, and the interior of agitator 5 as the piston moves tothe right, and then decreasing As will be further explained herebelow inconnection with the operation of the machine, this causes the agitator 5to effect a washing action within the tub 2.

' Completing now the descriptionof the machine prior to explaining theoperation thereof, in order to introduce washing and rinsing liquid intotub 2, a suitable conduit 47 is provided having an outlet opening overtub '2 so that water introduced into conduit 47 flows into the tub.- Thewater is supplied in the usual 'manner well known in the art and willnot be further described herein. A

In addition to causing rotation of basket 2 and operation of agitator 5,themotor 33 also drives apump 48 through a flexible coupling 49 whichconnects the motor shaft and'the pump shaft during washing and rinsingoperations. Pump .48 discharges into a conduit 49a which leads to anozzle 50 positioned above'tub 2 so that liquid overflowed throughopenings 2a may be recirculated from the tub 3 into the tub 2. Ifdesired, a suitable filter (not shown) may be inserted in therecirculation system in order to clean and filter the liquid during theoperation. This system constantly circulates the washing machine liquidfrom outerltub 3 through fins exert on the liquid beneath them. As aresult,'the net force on the liquid from any one fin is upward, the finexerting more force on the liquid in its flattened out position (shownin dotted outline) than when it moves down.

'Thus, a cyclic change in the shape of agitator 5, as caused byincreases and decreases in the pressure therewithin, provides a netupward force. This, in turn, creates a toroidal circulatory movement ofthe liquid in the direction shown by the arrow in tub 2. It is to benoted that flexibility and resilience of the fins 21, 22

and 23 is highly desirable since, if there is any substan throughopeningsZ-aand'is returned by pump 48 to tub conduit 49a and nozzle Sitback into washtub 2 where .it overflows through'openings 2a into tub 3to repeat the cycle. 'This recirculation system forms no part of thepresent invention, but is briefly described in order to complete thedescription of thernachine.

At the end of the washing and rinsing portions of the cycle, and inresponse to a reverse direction of rotation of motor 33, pump '48discharges into a conduit 51 'which is adapted for discharge to. astationary'tub or drain line so that the pump is eifective to drain tub3. While any suitable pump may be used for draining purposes, I preferto use the one just now described; it is described in detail and claimedin Patent'No. 2,883,843

issued to me on April 28, 1959, and owned by the Genoutwardly at itsweakest points-portions 17, 18 and 19thereby raising parts 14, 15 and16. The upward motion of parts :14, 15 and 16 carries with them, ofcourse, the fins 21, 22 and 23. When liquid is present in the tub 2, theupward motion of the fins causes them to flatten out, as shown in dottedoutline, thereby to increase the area of thefins which exerts an upwardpush 2 during operation of the machine. Then'the motor 33 is caused tooperate in the direction to effect movement of wrist pin assembly 37with no movement transmitted to belt 35 through clutch 34. As motor 33rotates, the piston 38 will be reciprocated back and forth withincylinder 39 and, as described, this will cause cyclic increases anddecreases in the pressure .within the hollow agitator 5. These increasesand decreases have the effect of raising sections 14, 15 and 16 of theflexible member 6 and then lowering them so that a net toroidalcirculatory effect is'provided in order to wash clotheswhich are withintub 2 in the washing liquid.

After a predetermined period of this action, the motor 33 is caused torotate in the opposite direction. By so doing, the clutch 34 transmitsmotion through belt 35 so as to rotate the tub 2. This causes waterinthe tub and in the clothes to be extracted centrifugally and passed outthrough openingsZa into the tub 3 so that pump 48 may remove the liquidby passing it out through conduit 51 to-drain. It will be understood,in. this regard, that the agitator 5 may continue to be operated duringspin byincrea'ses and decreases in pressure or alternatively, if this isfor some reason deemed undesirable, the wrist pin assembly 37 may bemounted to the motor by means of a one way clutch which prevents itsoperation in thesec- 0nd direction of rotation mentioned.

Following the-extraction operation, a supply of clean liquid isintroduced through inlet 47 into the tub 2 for rinsing the clothes, andthe motor 33 is again rotated in the direction to cause operation ofagitator 5 without spinning the tub 2. Finally, the tub 2 is' once-morerotated at high speed to discharge the rinse water into the outer tub.This control of the provision of washing and rinsing liquid, and of thedirection of operation of motor 33, may be readily controlled by anysuitable sequence control mechanism (not shown), presettable by means ofa manually operable memberlsuch as that shown at 52 on the backsplasherportion 53' of the machine.

It will be seen from the foregoing that my invention provides, in awashing machine, a highly effective structure for causing operation'ofan agitator in which the structure for transmitting motion to theagitator and to the tub 2 is caused to be exceedingly simple.

While in accordance with the patent statutes 1' have described what atpresent is consideredto be thepreferred skilled in the art that variouschanges and modifications may be made therein without departing from theinvention, and I therefore aim in the appended claims to cover all suchchanges and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope ofthe invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is:

1. A washing machine comprising: a tub for receiving liquid and articlesto be washed, said tub having a bottom wall with an opening formed atthe center thereof; a flexible hollow member extending upwardly intosaid tub from said bottom wall and secured against said bottom wall withits interior in communication with said opening, said member having afirst shape at a first lower pressure therewithin and a' second shape ata second higher pressure therewithin, said member being formed so thatcyclic change between said shapes creates a washing motion of liquid insaid tub; a cylinder; conduit means connecting said opening and saidcylinder; a piston reciprocable in said cylinder to raise and lower thepressure within said member; and an electric motor connected to saidpiston in driving relation thereto.

2. The apparatus defined in claim 1 wherein said hollow member hasportions with fins secured thereto, said fins extending upwardly andoutwardly and being formed of a flexible resilient material, saidportions moving upwardly and downwardly in response to changes inpressure between said first lower pressure and said second higherpressure.

3. The apparatus defined in claim 1 wherein said hollow member has finsof flexible resilient material extendmg outwardly therefrom, said finsbeing formed to provide a liquid circulation upon cyclic change of saidhollow member between said first shape and said second shape.

4. A washing machine comprising: a tub for receiving washing liquid andarticles to be washed, said tub having a bottom wall with an openingcentrally formed therein; a vertically extending shaft secured to saidtub centrally therebeneath in supporting relation thereto; support meansrotatably supporting said shaft; a flexible hollow member extendingupwardly into said tub and secured against said bottom wall thereof withits interior in communication with said opening, said member having afirst shape at a first lower pressure therewithin and a second shape ata second higher pressure therewithin, said member being formed so thatcyclic change between said shapes creates a washing motion of liquid insaid tub; a cylinder; conduit means including said support means andsaid shaft connecting said opening and said cylinder; a pistonreciprocable in said cylinder to raise and lower the pressure withinsaid member; a reversible electric motor; means connecting said motor tosaid piston to operate said piston upon rotation of said motor in atleast a support means and having an' opening formed in said I centersection.

6. A washing machine comprising: a tub for receiving washing liquid andarticles to be washed, said tub having a bottom wall formed with acentral opening therein; a flexible hollow member extending upwardlyinto said tub and secured against said bottom wall thereof with itsinterior in communication with said opening, said member having aplurality of vertical wall sections connected by generally horizontallyextending sections, said vertically extending wall sections beingsubstantially rigid and said horizontally extending sections beingdeformable in response to pressure within said hollow member thereby tocause the upper sections of said member to be raised, said member havingfins of flexible resilient material extending upwardly and outwardlyfrom said upper sections for effectng a toroidal circulatory motion ofwater in said tub upon upward and downward movement of said uppersections, said upper sections moving from a first position to theirraised position in response to an increase from a first lower pressureto a second higher pressure within said member; a cylinder; conduitmeans connecting said opening and said cylinder; a piston reciprooablein said cylinder to raise and lower the pressure within said member; andan electric motor connected to said piston in driving relation thereto.a

7. -For use in a washing machine: a flexible hollo member adapted toextend up within a liquid and article receiving tub, said member havingat least twovertically extending sections and at least one horizontallyextending section joining said vertical sections, said vertical sectionsbeing substantially rigid and the horizontally extending sections beingdeformable in response to increased pressure within said member to causethe upper vertical section to be raised, said member having a fin formedon the upper vertical section extending outwardly and upwardlytherefrom, and means for increasing and decreasing the pressure withinsaid member thereby to cause raising and lowering of the upper verticalsection.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,452,966 Field Apr. 24, 1923 2,417,998 Wales Mar. 25, 1947 2,648,211Eberlein Aug. 11, 1953 2,666,316 Candor Jan. 19, 1954

